DrinkWire is Liquor.com's showcase for the best articles, recipe and reviews from the web's top writers and bloggers. In this post, Boxes and Booze offers a clever presentation for a simple whiskey cocktail.

I think we should open up a little to one another. Maybe even turn “inside-out”. One of the most prolific and creative modern puzzle box artists from the Karakuri Creation Group, Hiroshi Iwahara, decided he would turn the traditional puzzle box inside out. On the outside, his creation appears plain, with very little or no detail at all – but this box is, incredibly, inside-out.

I’ve selected a fitting cocktail to toast this clever creation. The “Inside Job” is a bold bourbon sipper which was originally created to promote Larceny Bourbon whiskey. Playing off the Old Fashioned and the Sazerac classics, the Inside Job adds maraschino (cherry) liqueur to the mix. As in an Old Fashioned, the bourbon is sweetened with a bit of sugar. And, in this case, the cherry liqueur lends a new layer of flavor. The touch of absinthe also gives just a hint of extra complexity to the drink, as it does in a Sazerac. It’s an elegant, spirit-forward and bold cocktail with a nice balance.

Enjoy it neat or with a large chunk of ice to chill it – or perhaps we should turn things inside-out? I’ve inverted the format in homage to this backwards secret box, and placed the cocktail inside the ice – in this case, a hollow ice sphere. I think this is the way the Inside Job was always meant to be served. Here’s to turning tradition inside-out, flipping the script, and beholding the beauty on the inside. Cheers!

The Inside Job

2 oz bourbon (originally Larceny)
¼ oz maraschino liqueur
½ oz simple syrup
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 dash absinthe

Stir together with ice and strain into a favorite glass, neat or on the rocks (or turn things inside out!). Garnish with orange and a brandied cherry.

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To read the full article about this mind-bending, amazing “inside-out” puzzle box, see: Boxes and Booze: Inside Out